TODAY'S FAMILY & KIDS ACTIVITIES IN ROCKLAND-JUN 6

Whatever you're looking to do with your family and kids-libraries, festivals, museums, arts & crafts-you'll find it in today's list of fun and educational activities for families and kids in Rockland. Check out the NY Metro Parents' calendar for upcoming events!

Home schooled children ages 5-12 will discover ecological and biological principles and gain an appreciation and understanding of the natural world at this monthly program, held the first Thursday of each month. Each two-hour program will consist of indoor and outdoor hands-on learning and close observations on a 380-acre living museum. Space is limited and pre-registration is required. Parents can sign up for the series or just a single session. Through June 6.

NOTE NEW DATES! Winner of five Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Subtitled "A Musical Fable of Broadway," the show is set in the colorful world of New York City in the mid 20th century. "Guys and Dolls" is populated with gangsters and gamblers, missionary dolls, and beautiful showgirls, and has one of the great musical scores in American theatre. Including Frank Loesser's hits "Luck Be A Lady," "Guys and Dolls," "If I Were A Bell," and "Sit Down, You're Rockin' The Boat." Show runs through June 6, 2013. Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday matinees including lunch; Thursday, Friday Saturday, and Sunday Evenings including dinner.

This library hosts a multi-cultural story time with bilingual stories for children ages 3-7. Children will receive free books courtesy of Dollar General Store and the American Library Association (ALA)/Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). Registration is required. This week, hear stories in English and Spanish.

kids pre-school through second grade can sing Shabbat songs, talk about the Torah portion of the week, have a snack, then return to the main sanctuary to lead the congregation in Adon Olam. Saturdays through June 15.

A timeless classic and one of the world's best-loved musicals. Maria, a young, aspiring, but quirky, nun fills the lives of the Von Trapp children with "The Sound of Music" and captures the heart of their stern and lonely father. But will their harmonious lives be torn apart when their beautiful homeland is ravaged by war? Rodgers and Hammerstein's Tony Award-winning musical delights audiences with its uplifting story and irresistible score, including "Climb Every Mountain," "Do-Re-Mi," "Edelweiss," and "My Favorite Things." Show runs through August 11, 2013. Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday matinees including lunch; Thursday, Friday Saturday, and Sunday Evenings including dinner.

Get ready to zoom, spin, splash, swing, and soar your way through acres of amusement park rides from the cooling log flume, to the famous Dragon Coaster, and all your other favorites!
Admission Prices:
- Starting Friday, May 24: $30 unlimited rides; $20 Junior (under 48") Spectator admission (no rides) is free for Westchester County residents and $10 for non-residents.
Season Passes:
- $95 for unlimited rides all season, with a $15 discount for Westchester residents.
- $35 for spectator admission all season (no rides), for non-residents of Westchester County.
Acceptable proof of Westchester residency is a Westchester County Park Pass; New York State driver's license or non-driver ID; or a photo ID or report card from a Westchester County school.
For the season schedule go to ryeplayland.org or call the park at 914-813-7000. Use the website link to join the Playland E-Club and receive valuable discounts all season long.

The new attraction will include a ride through the Cretaceous and Jurassic periods with more than two-dozen animatronic dinosaurs up to 40 feet long which move, snarl, roar, and spit.
In anticipation of the new exhibit, the Bronx Zoo is offering New Yorkers a chance to vote for their favorite dinosaur species at bronxzoo.com/dino and win tickets to see the dinosaurs. Included in the vote: long-necked Brachiosaurus, the intimidating Tyrannosaurus rex, the gator-like Baryonyx, the massive Triceratops, or the flighted Quetzalcoatlus. Exclusive Bronx Zoo Dinosaur Safari stickers that can be used with a safari field guide will be given to those who vote.
Dinosaur Safari will include a ride through a two-acre area of the zoo, and will highlight the physical or behavioral adaptations many share with species that are alive today.
This limited engagement will run from Saturday, May 25 through Sunday, September 8, and will be included in the Total Experience Ticket.
A 20% discount is offered with online purchases for Monday and Tuesday visits. Tickets can be purchased in advance at bronxzoo.com/dino.

Rod Benders Car Club of New York hosts this popular, summertime event each Wednesday evening through September 11. Check out the cool cars as well as vendors, food, entertainment, raffles, and more. Evenings are family-friendly and pets are welcome.

In a summertime extravaganza, the Hudson River Museum presents a dramatic new 3-dimensional landscape - inspired by the dreams of artist Federico Uribe, acclaimed for his fascinating transformations of everyday objects into art. Witness how he creates sculptures, which are not "sculpted," but instead, constructed and woven in ways, curious and unpredictable, intricate and compulsive. A conceptual artist originally from Columbia, Uribe makes individual works and whole-room installations entirely from objects we see around us - shoes, colored pencils, hangers. Red, blue, yellow, a panoply of colors envelopes in this three-gallery display. For the Hudson River Museum, Uribe creates his site-specific installation, "Fantasy River," inspired by the dramatic rolling banks of the Hudson and the world's other great rivers. Filled with blossoming flowers, flying birds, dazzling sunshine, and the flowing "water" of a winding river, this installation, created from new and old materials, provides a spectacular theatrical experience in the Museum's central atrium. Uribe's art is a unique hybrid that resists classification. Watch how he uses the language of pop art to transform the objects of daily life, while tipping his hat to the history and tradition of classical art. Uribe studied art at the University of Los Andes in Bogota, and in 1988 moved to New York to study with acclaimed conceptual artist Luis Camnitzer. As part of his global vision, Uribe's career includes years of work in Cuba, Mexico, Russia, England and Miami. On view through September 22, 2013.

Kykuit, the six-story stone house and rolling hilltop estate that served as home to four generations of Rockefellers, is open to visitors beginning Saturday, May 4, through Sunday, Sep. 30, and Nov. 1-11. Open daily Oct 1-31. Kykuit's modern and classical art collection, architecture, and expansive gardens are consistently rated the top attraction in the lower Hudson Valley, and draw tens of thousands of visitors annually. Kykuit, which means "lookout" in Dutch, includes a six-story stone house, multiple terraced gardens, art galleries, outdoor classical and modern sculpture, and commanding Hudson River views. Its hilltop location overlooking the Hudson River and the Palisades is 500 feet above sea level. Visitors to Kykuit learn the story of the Rockefellers, beginning with John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil, whose business acumen made him the richest man in America in his day. He later became the country's first great philanthropist. By his death in 1937, he had given away more than half his fortune through various philanthropic programs. Visitors can choose from four tours: Classic, Grand, Timesaver, and Selected Highlights. The Classic, ideal for first-time visitors, is a shorter experience than the comprehensive, three-hour Grand. Besides the mansion, both of these tours include time in Kykuit's art galleries, gardens, and Coach Barn, with its collection of horse-drawn carriages, vintage automobiles, and equestrian equipment. The 90-minute Timesaver is ideal for those on tighter schedules, while Selected Highlights maximizes time in the gardens. Visitors can buy tickets online in advance, choosing the exact tour, time, and date they want to visit. Tickets are on sale at hudsonvalley.org. Historic Hudson Valley recommends advanced ticket buying, particularly for weekend tours, which fill up quickly. Besides online, tickets may be purchased by calling 914-631-8200 (service charge additional) or at the Kykuit Visitor Center at Philipsburg Manor in Sleepy Hollow. All tours start at the Kykuit Visitor Center; doors open at 9am.

Families are invited to learn about nature in a fun interactive way. Each guidebook sends participants looking for clues along nature center trails, which range from casual to challenging. Saturdays and Sundays through November.

Jill will help artists of all ages design seasonal or holiday-themed crafts. Her selection includes jewelry boxes, candy dishes, mugs, plates, picture frames, vases, and more. Pieces can be taken home that day or left for glazing. Fee includes instruction. Pre-registration is requested. Toddler workshops are held each Monday and Tuesday. All-ages workshops are held each Friday.

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